


welcome to your afterlife.

by lovesincerelyharry



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: AU, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-09
Updated: 2015-01-09
Packaged: 2018-03-06 19:54:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3146630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovesincerelyharry/pseuds/lovesincerelyharry
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Louis muttered the unthinkable, 'So I’m dead?'"</p><p>AU. Harry is a reaper escorting Louis to the afterlife, and the road there is surprisingly long.</p><p>Inspired from <a href="http://xaquaangelx.tumblr.com/post/101800154250/list-of-aus-that-arent-themed-at-all-were">this tumblr text post</a>.</p><p>Also found at <a href="http://lovesincerelyharry.tumblr.com/">lovesincerelyharry</a></p><p>Now in <a href="http://ficbook.net/readfic/2768183">Russian</a> !!</p>
            </blockquote>





	welcome to your afterlife.

**Author's Note:**

> I finally wrote it!!
> 
> A huge thank you to the lovely [Andrea](http://larrieslovelarents.tumblr.com/) for proofreading this over the span of two days and putting up with my chaos.
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy it (:

His backpack weighed down his right shoulder as he followed the sidewalk. His mother’s house was three blocks away, and she probably had dinner already made, the girls excited to see their big brother. Louis’ mood, however, was not as light-hearted. His future was unsecure, masked by an internship at the university ten blocks behind him; they promised him a job, but he didn’t know what he wanted anymore. His future was cloudy, but his stomach was hungry for a proper meal, a change from the normal bachelor food at his apartment.

He jogged across the street, his backpack bouncing along with his pace. The azure sky matched his eyes today, and he thought that maybe things weren’t as bad as he believed before. Maybe, all of the puzzle pieces would fit together; maybe, the stars would align. Louis bit his lip and continued forward, his right hand tightening on his backpack strap. He looked down at his Vans, covered in dirt from all the times he walked to the university and back home.

As he brought his stare forward again, he saw a man run around the corner, sprinting towards him. Louis stopped halfway through the block, latching onto his backpack even harder. Two police officers rounded the corner as the man turned to face them, pulling out a gun. Louis hardly heard the officers shout, “Get down!” before the first bullet was fired by the man, a returning bullet fired by an officer seconds later. The man ran backward, nearing Louis; and yet again, the officer screamed, “Get down!” Louis’ conscience told him to run, but his brain wasn’t cooperating. By the time the man was standing directly in front of him, mere feet from Louis, he finally took a step back, readying his legs to run. Suddenly, the man ducked down in front of Louis, and a gunshot echoed in Louis’ ears. Before Louis could will his legs to move his body any further, his vision went black.

His head pounded as Louis forced his eyes open. He let out a groan, bringing his hands over his eyes. He pivoted at the waist and sat up on the sidewalk, clueless as to how he got there. His eyes squinted as he saw both police officers running towards him.

He lifted his hand up. “I’m okay, I swear,” he voiced, shutting his eyes again. His head was throbbing, but by the time he opened his eyes again, the officers had left his vision. He went to turn around, but a different man started walking towards him now. The man was tall and lanky, wearing all black, with what looked to be a faint white light around his body, accenting his brown, curly hair.

Louis managed to push himself off of the ground, coming to stand right in front of the man. He stared directly into Louis’ eyes. “Did they catch that guy?” Louis spoke, gently massaging his temple. Instead of speaking, the man gestured behind Louis, his large hand pointing ominously.

Louis let out a scoff as he turned around, his eyes falling on the scene behind him. The two police officers were crouched on the sidewalk, surrounding a body, blood running down the concrete. One officer moved slightly, and Louis came face-to-face with himself. His eyes were wide open, and in the middle of his forehead was a red hole, a bit of blood trickling from it. Blood was splattered around his head like a halo. Louis grabbed his stomach and keeled over, gagging from the sight. He placed his hand on his forehead, looking for that same hole; he didn’t find anything, but his head throbbed from the touch.

A hand fell on his back, and Louis jolted up, spinning around. The man relaxed back to a standing position. Louis let out a choked sob, “Don’t touch me.” He pushed against the man’s shoulder and ran forward. Two more blocks, and he would be with his mother; he would be back at his family home. And as Louis ran, he left behind thoughts of his backpack or the officers or that mysterious man. To him, this was just some sick joke, but once he got home, everything would reset; everything would go back to normal.

By the time he ran through two intersections, he saw his mother standing on the front steps, leaning over the railing. Louis waved in her direction, but instead of meeting his gaze, she looked past him at the flashing lights on the road two streets down. Louis reached the bottom step, feet away from his mother, when the ambulance sirens sounded. His mother shook her head and turned to go inside, but before she had a chance to close the door, Louis bounded in after her.

“Mum,” he said, waiting for her to turn around as she shut the door, “I’m right here, Mum.” He reached out to touch her, but she walked right past him.

“Lottie, get my phone, please.” Jay walked nervously over to the table. “He should have been here by now; I’m getting worried.”

Louis’ breath shortened as he spoke, “Mum, turn around; I’m right here. Please, turn around.”

Lottie walked into the dining room from the hallway. “I’m sure he’s fine, Mum. Probably got held up at the university.”

“But I’m right here,” Louis gasped.

A ringing phone broke the silence, and Jay immediately looked at the caller. She wrinkled her nose and put the phone up to her ear. “Hello, who’s calling?” She paused. “Yes, I am Louis Tomlinson’s mother.” Another pause; Lottie moved closer to her mother, and Fizzy came out from the hallway. “What?” Jay placed her left hand to her lips. “No…”

The phone fell from her hand, and Jay’s knees buckled out from under her as she collapsed onto the floor. Her daughters were immediately by her side as was Louis. Jay sobbed into her hands as Lottie and Fizzy asked question after question, the person on the phone still waiting for a response. Louis went to place his hand on his mother’s head, but he stopped, a tear rolling down his face, matching the ones his mother was already crying. He stepped back, his hands shaking beside him.

Fingers rested on his shoulder, and Louis spun around. “What do you want?” he muttered, his voice housing agony. “How did you find me?”

The man with the white aura dropped his hand. “I will always be able to find you, Louis.” Louis remained silent, a tear rolling down his face. “I am your reaper; I’m here to guide you into the afterlife, if you’ll have me, of course.” He bowed his head ever so slightly.

Louis muttered the unthinkable, “So I’m dead?”

The man gave a single nod.

Louis’ legs shook underneath him, his body nearly dropping to the floor, before the man’s hands reached out and grabbed Louis by his arms. Louis collapsed forward and fell into the man’s arms instead.

“My name’s Harry,” the man said as Louis nestled into his neck, sobbing. “I’m here to make things a bit easier for you and to help you, if you want to move on, that is.”

“My family…” Louis whispered, finalizing it with a quick inhalation.

Harry breathed steadily. “Unfortunately, you saw them when they found out. It’s much easier to accept what has happened if you don’t see them grieving.”

Louis gasped for air and sniffled, pushing away from Harry. “I don’t want to see them crying anymore, please.”

With one hand, Louis wiped away a tear, and with the other, Louis let Harry take it. Immediately, the noise around them disappeared, and his mother’s house was vacant all but for them. Louis turned around and saw an empty dining room table with no one in front of him.

Harry cleared his throat. “We are in what a majority call Purgatory, the transition period between life and afterlife. If you choose to come with me, we will go on a journey to your afterlife.”

Louis turned back to face Harry. “What’s at the end of the road?”

“That, I cannot say. I can only lead and walk with you, never inform of what is to come.”

“Piss it.” Louis huffed and shut his eyes, gripping his still-pounding head. He exhaled slowly and placed his arms back at his sides. “Do I really have any other option but to follow you?”

“If you choose not to travel to your afterlife, you will sit here for eternity and wander the earth as a spirit.” Harry’s face was relaxed, as if he’d said this speech many times before.

“Is that what you are?”

Harry’s face split into a smile. “No, I’m something completely different; I was chosen to be here for this reason only, to help people move on after death.” He continued to grin.

Louis cocked his head. “Why the fond face? Did I do something wrong?”

Harry grinned even wider. “No, you’re just very inquisitive. Most don’t speak at all.”

Pursing his lips, Louis spoke, “Well, then, this will be a fun walk, won’t it?” Despite his joking words, his voice still held a melancholic tone.

Louis pushed past Harry and walked to the door, stopping before he grabbed the handle. “Can I actually touch things, or will I just…?” Louis paused as Harry walked forward and grabbed the doorknob for him.

“Unfortunately, in Purgatory, you can’t pass through things.” He pushed the door open and gestured outside, the motion reminding Louis of the gesture Harry did when he died.

Louis focused all of his attention on walking down the stairs, taking each step carefully. In the back of his mind, his death didn’t quite sink in yet; and by the time he reached the last step, he realized that would be the last time he would ever walk down his mother’s steps. He shut his eyes at the base of the staircase and turned his face towards the sky, still a light blue, crisp and clear.

He felt Harry moving beside him, but no hand came to touch his skin. Louis simply stood there, visions of his life flashing before his shut eyes. His internship at the university didn’t matter anymore; his future career was insignificant now. He would never see his mother, nor would he ever kiss his little sisters again. The thought of sex traced his mind, and he realized that never again would he feel another man kiss his skin. Louis wouldn’t feel anyone for that matter, and as quickly as the thought came to his mind, a tear slipped down his cheek.

 _Stop it_ , Louis thought, resetting his face forward, his eyes still shut. He shook his head. _Enough of this; you are dead_ , he reminded himself. _Accept your fate; you don’t have any other choice._

Once he opened his eyes, the double lines in the middle of the road became a bright white and shown all the way down the street from which he just came. He looked up the street, which became a dull, colorless path. Louis leaned forward and looked down the road where the lights shown. Without hesitation, he stepped onto the street and walked parallel the lights. Where they led, Louis didn’t know, but he hoped they would give him a look into his future, wherever his future might lead.

Harry appeared next to Louis, moving in tandem with Louis’ footfalls. His aura wasn’t quite as bright as the lights on the ground, but Louis felt he was taking the right path with both lights beneath him and beside him. As they walked in silence, Louis noted the fluidity of Harry’s movements, the gentle gait that Harry possessed. Louis’ footsteps, though calculated, looked shoddy next to Harry’s.

“Does that come with the job?” Louis spoke up, glancing down at Harry’s feet.

A laugh broke Harry’s lips. “I suppose so.”

Louis waited for more to stumble out of Harry. “Not much of a talker, I see.” He let out a large gust of air, and it whistled between his lips.

“Again,” Harry voiced, “I’m not used to talking. Most are just angry at me and run away to their fate.”

Louis slowed down a bit as they neared the second block. “I dunno why. If I’m gonna be stuck here for a while on this path, I might as well have someone to talk to.” Harry grinned.

Right as they came to the next corner, Louis watched himself appear on the sidewalk, arm on his backpack strap like before. He stopped in his tracks as he watched that same man run around the corner, the officers following quickly behind him. Louis’ bottom lip quivered as the gunshots reverberated through his body; the bullet went through his head and he watched himself fall backwards. Louis instinctively rubbed his forehead, swearing he felt something there. Finally, Louis watched the man run right past his dead body, cut across the street, and disappear down an alley. The officers holstered their guns and crouched down around Louis’ body; Louis could hear the faint sirens of the ambulance in the distance.

“He got away,” Louis muttered, feeling defeated. Harry nodded, looking over to Louis. “I didn’t even feel it, nothing at all,” Louis whispered. “How will my mother ever be okay with this? How will my sisters even be able to look at me at my funeral?”

Harry sighed gently. “I can’t tell you the future, but I can promise that life does continue, even for your family. Even for you, though you may not see it now.”

“So what, I have to come to terms with my death?” Louis watched the ambulance pull up to the crime scene, two men and a stretcher exiting from the vehicle. “How can I ever be okay with this? I’m dead; I died for nothing. I was a fucking casualty, and the bastard got away.”

“The first step to moving on is accepting your death. We can watch it happen over and over again, if you wish, until you finally accept it.”

“Fuck that,” Louis spoke, walking past the scene to the right of him, “I can’t do anything about it now; I’m dead.”

Harry gave a small smile and appeared beside Louis in an instant. “I don’t know if you took that well or if you’re in denial.”

“Does it matter?” Louis asked, a bit of anger coating his voice. “Now, where are we going?”

Harry gestured to the lit lines before them. “Wherever this road takes us.”

Louis let out a sigh. “You’re telling me that you have no idea where this leads.” His voice was laced with sarcasm.

His lips pursed together in what looked like to be a smile. “I might know our next destination, but I am forbidden to tell you. If I told you something, it would assumed that I am influencing you, and that is not allowed.”

They continued forward, and Louis spoke up, “Do you know what my fate is, where I’ll end up?’

Harry shook his head. “No, but I do know where you will not end up.” Louis’ eyebrows crinkled with question. “Based on the path you took at your mother’s house, your journey will not lead to least desired destination.”

Louis spun around and looked back towards his mother’s house. He saw the darkened road that lay behind them and excitedly turned towards Harry. “That path. If I would have chosen that path, I would have gone to Hell, wouldn’t I have?” Harry merely shrugged. “You’re not gonna tell me a wretched thing, are you?” Harry just smiled and looked forward. “Fine,” Louis said indignantly, “I don’t know who would want to go that way anyway; who would even choose that option?”

Harry hung his head slightly. “Some do.”

Louis stopped at the fifth intersection and touched Harry’s arm. “You did?” He was taking a shot in the dark, but Harry’s reaction was too telling to not ask.

He stopped a foot away from Louis. “My story is not regularly what happens, and normally, I never have the opportunity to even discuss it. I feel like now is not the time either.” He began forward once more.

Louis held his place for a moment, his thoughts churning, before running up behind Harry and jumping in front of him. “Wait a second, are you forbidden to speak of it or do you just not want to talk about it?” He bit his lips, hoping to get a solid answer from this mysterious man before him.

Harry glanced down at Louis, a faint smile forming on his regularly rigid features. “I’ve never spoken about it before.” He let out a huff before looking down at the ground, kicking at the dust by his feet. “I died nearly four years ago. I was running across the street to visit my friends, and a car turned around the corner too quickly to stop. My mother watched from the stairs in front of our house as her eighteen year old boy died.”  He twisted his hands together. “Once I realized I was dead and never coming back again, the same two paths appeared for me, except my death scene was on the darkened path. My mother was over there by my body, crying among the blood. My reaper didn’t say much, and he wasn’t permitted to hold me back when I went over to see her.” He took in a shaky breath. “I went to Hell. I couldn’t let go, and I believe that He tricked me anyway.” He let out a small laugh. “The afterlife knew I didn’t belong there, so I was given a choice sometime after my death: Choose to stay in Hell and serve for eternity or travel among the worlds as a reaper of souls for eternity. I, of course, chose the latter, and here we are.” He gently ran his fingers through his hair, bringing his gaze back to Louis.

He stood in awe, looking at Harry, and suddenly, Louis realized that what he was going through was something Harry knew well. However, Louis knew that his ending was going to be vastly different than Harry’s, and something in that truth scared him.

“So I know now that I won’t be a reaper when I get to the end of this road?” Louis moved slowly around Harry, and they began forward again.

“I don’t know what awaits you; I merely am here to guide you and help you accept your afterlife when it is presented to you.”

Louis ducked his head down and kicked a stone down the street. “You were human once then,” he spoke, bringing up Harry’s past again. “And I’m here whining and moaning about dying.”

By the time Harry replied, they had reached the stone Louis kicked. Harry decided to kick it further down the road, giving him something to look forward to. “I shouldn’t have even said anything; my past is my past, and there is no point in bringing it up again.”

Louis faced Harry and walked down the street sideways; he brought his hands up in exultation. “But isn’t that the beauty of life, being able to take those memories with you? I want to be able to remember playing footie in the damp grass and eating French toast in the mornings with powdered sugar and kissing a guy under the stars and feeling the rain on my skin. Aren’t those the things we should live for after we’re dead?” Louis smiled at Harry, hoping to drag some more emotion out of that pale and focused façade.

“That’s the one thing I miss,” Harry voiced, “Kissing someone. And my mum’s homemade mashed potatoes.” He shut his eyes in thought, and a smile stretched across his face.

“See!” Louis exclaimed, “I knew there was some life left in you. It’s a shame to see that gorgeous smile put to waste.” He threw Harry a wink and got a head-start, running to kick the stone again. It flew through the air and fell into a grate a block away. Behind Louis, Harry’s face tinted the lightest shade of pink as he nervously threaded his fingers through his hair again.

As Louis looked around for another stone to kick, his eyes glanced up at the building before him. He took a step back and stared down at the road; the lights dimmed and faded, coming to a T in the road. Louis blinked repeatedly as Harry reached him and looked forward optimistically.

“Now, you must give up your future.” Harry walked onto the front lawn of Louis’ university; he stopped and waited for Louis to follow.

Tears stung Louis’ eyes. “Why is it so hard to give up something you didn’t even have?” He hung his head and gasped for breath. “I feel like I didn’t even have the chance to live. I literally just moved out of my mother’s house and managed to get an internship, and now, I’m dead.” Louis looked up at Harry and saw him hanging his head and wringing his hands together.

“Fuck, what the fuck am I saying?” Louis walked over to Harry. “I’m whining again, and you went through it, too. You were younger than me, too; you literally had your whole life ahead of you.”

Harry shook his head. “This isn’t about me.”

“It kind of is though. You were given to me; you were to be my reaper. You’re here to teach me things, to help me understand. And I know that you never even gave up your future; you never had the chance. You had it harder than me, Harry. I don’t want your past to be in vain.”

Suddenly, the lights appeared beneath Louis and Harry again, except this time, they continued on the grass and towards the building. The two of them watched as the building disappeared and the lights pushed forward, meeting up with the road again on the other side.

Louis smiled at Harry and grabbed his hand. “Let’s go, together.” He intertwined his fingers with Harry’s and then continued forward, Harry’s face even pinker than before.

“This is definitely against the rules,” Harry stated once they made it onto the road again.

“Like you’ve never broken any rules before,” Louis chimed back, swinging his and Harry’s arms back and forth. “Besides, I might only have a few more minutes with you, and I have to spend them wisely.”

By the time the words dropped from Louis’ mouth, he understood the severity of what he’d said. If the university was his last obstacle, that meant he would be moving on soon. Whatever destination awaited at the end of his path, Harry was not going to be anywhere near him when that time came. When he joined the afterlife, Harry would be but a memory, one of those pieces of his past that he spoke of holding onto. To Louis, that wasn’t fair; the last person he saw on earth, Louis would never see him again. Maybe that’s why the rules shouldn’t be broken. With that final thought, Louis pulled his hand from Harry’s, and Harry noticed.

“Change of heart?” Harry muttered, his voice deeper than usual.

“It’s nothing,” Louis murmured, focusing his eyes on the road ahead of him. Quickly, both Louis and Harry slipped into a mutual silence.

Louis recognized the neighborhood they walked through, though he’d never been on this side of town often. The lights remained bright on the paved road beneath them, and Louis tried to find the end in sight, squinting his eyes every few blocks. He wasn’t particularly looking forward to it, but he wanted enough time to prepare himself to say goodbye to Harry.

In a way, Louis felt bad for him, and though his end was near, he wanted Harry’s to be near as well. For the rest of his life, Harry would be forced to work, whereas Louis saw a simple afterlife for himself, the cliché white lights and calming music. Harry deserved that; to Louis, Harry deserved that more than he did. The further they walked, the more Louis realized that he wished he could switch places with Harry. Maybe even turn around and run back to that dim light, in the hopes that maybe, just maybe, his life in Hell would lead to an eternity of work with Harry. Finally then, the two of them could have stern faces and wear black together, finding each other after a long day’s work and nestling together for an eternity.

Louis pulled himself from the daydream, focusing back on the lights. He only heard his footsteps on the pavement, but Harry was right next to him, fluidly moving in tandem with Louis’ pace. He glanced back at the houses around them and noticed a similar blue house from before. He disregarded it as a fluke and remained silent, continuing to follow the light. Louis peered forward once more, trying to see some end to the pathway before him. Then, once again, his eyes fell on another house. He stopped dead in his tracks.

“I saw that house already.” Louis pointed to the yellow house on his left. “And that blue house back there, I saw before, too.”

Harry stopped a few feet in front of Louis, bowing his head down and huffing.

“I feel like this shouldn’t have taken so long. I went through two obstacles already; we haven’t come across another. Harry, what’s happening?”

The lights reflected against Harry’s ashen face. “I don’t want you to go."

Louis stopped mid-step and his heart quivered in his chest. “What did you just say?”

Harry spun around and took two large strides to Louis. “I want you to stay here; I don’t want you to move on.” Louis opened his mouth to speak, but Harry pressed his finger to his lips. “You should have made it to the end of your journey intersections ago, but I’m too selfish to let you go. Maybe that’s why I went to Hell in the first place, but Louis, I don’t want to lose the only person I’ve gotten close to in four years. I don’t want to be alone again.”

“What do we do?”

Harry laughed. “We don’t do anything. I need to do what I should have done before.” He shut his eyes, and instantly, their surroundings changed. They came face to face with the end of the road, met with a tall, white wall, that crisp aura radiating from it. “Your afterlife awaits, and I messed with that. I’m eternally sorry.”

Louis gestured to the wall. “So that’s it then? I’ll never see you again?”

“I rarely go where you’ll be going; since I’ve been to Hell, they don’t like me visiting.” Harry latched onto Louis’ hand. “You’re better off; this is where you belong.”

“But I can choose, can’t I?” Louis grabbed onto Harry’s other hand. “I choose to stay with you. You don’t deserve to be alone, Harry. I want my afterlife to be with you.”

Harry shook his head. “It doesn’t work like that. You’ll only have my memory now; and I know I’ll never forget you.” He smiled, a blush coating his cheeks.

Louis pulled both of his hands from Harry’s. “But I’m not ready.”

Harry lit up. “Oh, but you are, and you will have a beautiful afterlife. It’s what someone like you deserves.” He brought his fingers to caress Louis’ cheek, the bright lights reflecting off of his golden skin. “You’re ready.”

Louis felt a tear roll down his cheek, falling onto Harry’s hand. Knowing his only time was now, in one quick motion, he wrapped his arms around Harry. He pulled him down slightly so that his lips pressed against Harry’s, a surge of energy racing through Louis’ body. Harry returned motion and lifted Louis up slightly, moving his body into the kiss. Around them, the white wall crumbled, and the bright lines faded on the road. Louis slipped his hands down Harry’s back, and Harry wound his hands in Louis’ hair. The clothes Louis wore faded darker and darker until they were devoid of color, matching the outfit Harry donned. And when Louis pulled from the kiss, he felt lighter and leaner and stronger. He looked down at his hands intertwined with Harry’s and noticed the faint, white glow coming from both of them.

Harry smiled, grasping Louis’ hand tighter. “Welcome to your afterlife.”

**Author's Note:**

> Leave kudos, comment, bookmark.
> 
> I love you all; thank you once again.
> 
>  
> 
> [lovesincerelyharry](http://lovesincerelyharry.tumblr.com/)


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